Winter
Winter are a death/doom/crust punk band originating from New York City, USA. Initially active from 1989 - 1992, their only full-length album Into Darkness has served as one of the seminal albums in the makings of the death/doom genre and ultimately the originators of the genre. Winter served as a key influence on doom metal bands such as Electric Wizard and Cathedral to name a few though the cult status would come well after the band's demise. Winter would reunite in 2011 for a string of live shows nearly twenty years after their initial dissolution. The band's name came from the Amebix tune of the same name. History Winter formed in NYC in 1988 as the trio of Scott Lewis, Stephen Flam and John Alman. From there the band began composing "torturous slow" music inspired by personal misanthropy and apocalyptic mindsets, though refusing to be labeled into any one scene. Incorporating elements of Amebix added a crust vibe to their sound. From there four tracks would be composed into the Hour of Doom demo as the band began playing shows around the NYC area. From there the band began to get offers from a host of labels, notably outright refusing a deal from Earache. Ultimately the band chose Future Shock to release their debut album Into Darkness, joking that the poor deal was intentional to keep the band underground and ultimately a lack of ambition on the band's part. After the band's release the group mainly stayed inactive in terms of live performances or recording, citing that the "band had become a sideline".Archived Winter PageAccessed 17 July 2017 Despite a reissue of their album from Nuclear Blast the band would be split up by 1992. Nuclear Blast would also reissue the demo as Eternal Frost with a bonus, unreleased instrumental track as the band gained cult status worldwide among underground doom circles. In 2010 it would be announce that Winter would reunite at the 2011 edition of Roadburn Festival, curated by Sunn O))). In response to the band's reunion the label would also reissue Into Darkness on CD and vinyl. From there the band would perform on 22 June at Terminal 5 alongside Sleep and White Hills in NYC. They would also play the West Coast for the first time at Power of the Riff at The Echoplex in Los Angeles on 13 August 2011. From the initial reunion dates Winter would follow with an appearance at Maryland Deathfest on 26 May in 2012, Chaos in Tejas in Austin, Texas on 2 June and Power of the Riff East in the Warsaw Ballroom on 2 September. A second appearance at Maryland Deathfest happened in 2015 with an intended European tour that was ultimately canceled due to Stephen Flam suffering from severe hearing damage. Discography * Winter aka Hour of Doom (1989, Independent) * Into Darkness (1990, Future Shock; 2011, Southern Lord Records) * Eternal Frost (1994, Nuclear Blast) Members * John Alman - Bass, Vocals (1988 - 1992, 2010 - Present) * Stephen Flam - Guitar (1988 - 1992, 2010 - Present) * Joe Goncalves - Drums (1990 - 1992, 2010 - Present) * Scott Lewis - Drums (1988 - 1990) * Jimmy Jackson - Live Drums (2011 - 2012) * John Paradisio - Live Drums (2015) External Links *Oppressive Freedom: A Winter Epitaph References Category:Band Category:Death/Doom Category:New York Category:New York City Category:USA Category:Crust Punk Category:Winter Category:Nuclear Blast Records Category:Southern Lord Records